Sembcorp Marine Ltd.'s subsidiary Jurong Shipyard has signed two contracts, worth $540 million each or $1.08 billion, to construct two ultra-deepwater drillships, including options for three additional units, from a subsidiary of Transocean Ltd. Transocean has to exercise the first option within one year, the second within 18 months, and the final within 24 months of the signing of the existing contract. The company noted that the payment terms for both drillships are very favorable to Transocean.

The two drillships, scheduled for delivery in 2Q 2017 and 1Q 2018 respectively, will be built based on Jurong Shipyard’s proprietary Jurong Espadon III design which is capable of operating in ultra-deepwater development drilling operations worldwide. 

"These newbuild drillship orders highlight continued execution of our long-term asset strategy ... We are committed to reinvesting in our fleet through the addition of differentiated, high-specification and high-return assets that will appeal to a wide spectrum of our customers. We are very pleased to partner with Sembcorp Marine's Jurong Shipyard in this effort," Steven L. Newman, president and CEO of Transocean Ltd. said in a press release.

The drillships will be equipped with state-of-the-art drilling facilities, a large moon pool to cater for a larger riser angle and bilge boxes designed for superior motion characteristics. They also feature larger deck space with enclosed riser bay and round mud pits inside the hull for operational efficiency and safety. Equipped with DP-3 (Dynamic Positioning Class 3) capabilities, the drillships will be capable of operating at 12,000 feet water depth and drilling to depths of 40,000 feet, with accommodation facilities for a crew of 220 personnel. The drillships will be initially outfitted with one 15,000 psi blowout preventer (BOP) with the ability to add a second BOP.

“We are pleased that Transocean has chosen Jurong Shipyard as a strategic partner to build their drillships with us. We would like to thank Transocean for selecting us and for their confidence in our Jurong Espadon III design and capabilities,” William Gu, general manager of Jurong Shipyard’s Offshore Division said in a company release.

Transocean now owns and operates six drilling rigs built by Sembcorp Marine’s yards, including three jackups and one semisubmersible delivered by PPL Shipyard and two semisubmersibles built by Jurong Shipyard.